The Latest News On Echinacea
There are many herbal and natural remedies on the market, but few are as well known as the herb Echinacea. For many years, Echinacea has been one of the world's most popular herbal remedies, and it is being studied for the ability to fight colds, flu and other common infections.
What Is Echinacea?
The herb we know as Echinacea, also called the purple coneflower, actually consists of nine distinct species, but only three varieties are used in herbal medicine. Those three varieties are:
> Echinacea engustifolia
> Echinacea pallida
> Echinacea purpurea
Various parts of the plants, including the flowers, leaves, stems and roots, are used in hundreds of different commercial products and herbal medicines. Depending on the preparation and the variety used, this popular herb may be able to stimulate the immune system and fight bacteria, viruses and other common harmful microbes.
Echinacea And The Immune System
Echinacea appears to be both safe and powerful, and it is thought to stimulate various immune system cells that are key to the fight against infection. In addition, the herb is also thought to boost the ability of the cells to produce interferon, a substance vital to the fighting of viruses.
In particular, Echinacea is thought to help to reduce our susceptibility to colds and flu. This herb is most effective when it is taken at the first sign of a cold or flu. For those who are already afflicted by colds or the flu, Echinacea is thought to have the power to shorten their duration and severity.
Echinacea is also being studied for its possible role in fighting such recurrent respiratory ailments as bronchitis, strep throat and sinusitis. It is thought that the immune boosting properties of Echinacea are responsible for this effectiveness in fighting chronic infections. Again, Echinacea works best when taken at the first sign of illness.
Echinacea And Healing
Echinacea may also aid in speeding the healing of wounds to the skin, and in reducing inflammation. Conditions treated by Echinacea include burns, sores, cuts and scrapes, as well as boils, abscesses, canker sores and eczema. Echinacea preparations can be applied directly to the wound or taken orally to promote a healthy immune system response.
In addition Echinacea has even shown promise at treating chronic fatigue syndrome, one of medicine's most puzzling conditions. While results have varied, many CFS sufferers have found relief by using this popular herb.
Echinacea comes in a wide variety of forms, and many different preparations, including tablets, capsules, soft gels, liquids and tinctures. Echinacea can also be bought as a dried herb and brewed into a tea. There are a variety of Echinacea preparations consisting of creams that can be rubbed onto sunburns and other skin irritations to provide relief.
When buying Echinacea, either at your health food store or over the internet, it is important to read the label carefully. Some preparations will contain mixed ingredients from several different species, and from many parts of the plant. It is important to choose an Echinacea preparation which contains the species and the plant part best suited to treat your ailment.
About Nutrition
| Drinking Water |
|
Good nutrition isn't just about the foods you eat, it also includes the beverages you drink. Water is a good beverage. It doesn't have any calories or artificial colorings or flavorings and your body needs it. It's also cheap when you get it from the tap. Maybe you prefer bottled water or you use a filtered pitcher to avoid impurities or you prefer the flavor.
I don't like to drink water. I don't like the way it tastes. A lot of people think that's weird because water doesn't really have any flavor. I was a picky eater as a kid so maybe that's related, I don't know. Anyway, if you're like me you can still get enough water by choosing other beverages or flavoring your water with a slice of lemon or lime. I also like sparkling water. You can choose flavored waters too. Just because they're flavored doesn't change the fact that they're almost completely water. Common Questions About Water
Drinking Water originally appeared on About.com Nutrition on Friday, February 3rd, 2012 at 10:45:21. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Sweet Potatoes |
|
Did you know that yams and sweet potatoes are a great source of vitamin A and beta carotene? Sweet potatoes are also a good source of fiber. They have a naturally sweet flavor that doesn't need much extra seasoning, although they're often glazed or served in sweet potato pie. Today I wrote an article about sweet potatoes, how to choose them, how to cook them and I included some links to healthy and delicious recipes that feature sweet potatoes: What's your favorite way to serve sweet potatoes? I like mine baked and then served with a little bit of real maple syrup with a few pecans sprinkled on top. Sweet Potatoes originally appeared on About.com Nutrition on Monday, January 30th, 2012 at 11:07:54. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Vitamin D In the Winter |
|
Vitamin D is a popular vitamin in the world of nutrition right now - it seems there's news about vitamin D research every week. Your body needs vitamin D in order to absorb calcium and various research studies have linked deficiencies with several health conditions, including high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. Today I read a study published in the American Journal of Cardiology in which the authors looked at vitamin D deficiency, supplementation and cardiovascular disease risk factors like high blood pressure and diabetes. The researchers (not surprisingly) found an association of vitamin D deficiency with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and also with decreased survival time. So they looked a little closer at the patients who were deficient in vitamin D levels to see if taking vitamin D supplements had any impact on survival times. Turns out the vitamin D deficient-subjects who were taking vitamin D supplements tended to have increased survival times. This was an observational study and not a randomized control trial (which provides the highest form of evidence), so there was no specific dosage used and the subjects weren't required to take any vitamin D. So there was a wide range of dosages reported, from 1,000 International Units per day up to prescription forms of vitamin D taken at 50,000 International Units bi-weekly. Interestingly, subjects who had cardiovascular disease but were not deficient in vitamin D according to blood tests, but took vitamin D supplements anyway didn't have the same increased survival times. We still have a lot to learn about any therapeutic benefits of vitamin D. You don't usually get much vitamin D from the foods you eat, although milk is usually fortified with it, you're body makes vitamin D after your skin is exposed to sunlight. Those of us who live north of a line drawn on a map from the northern border of California in the west to Boston in the east can't even get vitamin D from the sun during the colder months because the sun's rays just aren't strong enough to give us the UV exposure we need. So it's a good idea to take vitamin D supplements during the winter (or any time of the year if you avoid sun exposure). Vitamin D In the Winter originally appeared on About.com Nutrition on Friday, January 27th, 2012 at 14:40:43. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Dietary Magnesium and Stroke Risk |
|
A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition came to the conclusion that dietary magnesium intake is inversely associated with the risk of ischemic stroke (these are the strokes caused by blood clots in the brain). The authors performed a meta-analysis, which is a type of study that involves taking the data from previous similar studies and combining them. The authors of the study used the data from seven previous studies and determined that an increased intake of 100 milligrams magnesium per day was associated with an 8 - 9% decreased risk of ischemic stroke. Eight or nine percent may not sound like much, but according to the Internet Stroke Center, stroke is the third highest cause of death in the United States and of those strokes, 88% are ischemic strokes, so something as simple as increasing a dietary mineral could be quite significant.
So this could be a good thing, but, it's important to keep a couple of things in mind with this study. The authors of this study looked at dietary intake of magnesium so it doesn't indicate that taking magnesium supplements will have the same decrease in risk, and it's important (I think) to understand that magnesium deficiency symptoms are uncommon. Also, it's possible that the reduction of stroke risk is caused by other factors besides the actual magnesium since foods that contain magnesium are generally healthy fiber-rich foods - things like whole grains, nuts, seeds and green leafy vegetables. Still, I believe it adds some evidence to the idea that eating magnesium-rich plant-based foods is important for good health. Dietary Magnesium and Stroke Risk originally appeared on About.com Nutrition on Tuesday, January 24th, 2012 at 15:36:54. Permalink | Comment | Email this |
| Nutritionist or Dietitian? |
|
A reader wants to know if there's a difference between nutritionists and dietitians? Here's my answer: Nutritionist or Dietitian Have you been to a dietitian or a nutritionist? Or both? Share your experiences and opinions of the two by leaving a comment. Nutritionist or Dietitian? originally appeared on About.com Nutrition on Monday, January 23rd, 2012 at 15:32:29. Permalink | Comment | Email this |